Chapter 197, Lesson Two
Lu Jingyan's second class was already packed with people in the lecture hall before the bell rang.
Many students from other departments also came to audit the class, and the aisles and back rows were full of people, all craning their necks, wanting to see the demeanor of this combat hero again.
Lu Jingyan was still wearing that simple white shirt and military pants, standing upright on the podium, his aura as steady as a mountain.
Just as the school bell rang, the heavy wooden door of the classroom was pushed open.
The person who walked in was Professor He Jianian from the History Department, followed by several of his most outstanding graduate students.
He Jianian was in his fifties, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, his hair was neatly combed, and the pedantic air of an old-fashioned scholar could be smelled from a distance.
"Professor Lu, would you mind if we came to sit in and have an academic exchange?" He Jianian had a warm smile on his face, but his tone revealed a condescending attitude.
He didn't even wait for Lu Jingyan's reply before leading his students to sit down in the reserved seats in the first row. His demeanor was more like an inspection than an observation.
The students immediately began whispering among themselves, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.
Everyone knows that Professor He has the utmost contempt for these "common soldiers" they talk about. He has said in public more than once that having soldiers lecture at the university is a pollution of the academic hall.
Today's commotion clearly indicates that they came with ill intentions.
Chu Yunfei, sitting in the front row, frowned slightly. She had deliberately worn a tight-fitting wool sweater today, and when she stood up, her chest curves were quite eye-catching. She had wanted to find an opportunity to show off, but unexpectedly, He Jianian appeared out of nowhere.
Lu Jingyan's gaze swept across He Jianian's face without any ripples, as if he had only seen a few insignificant tables and chairs.
"Attend class."
He tapped the blackboard, and two words instantly silenced the noisy classroom.
This lesson is about intelligence warfare.
Lu Jingyan's teaching style remained consistent: no fluff, just pure substance. From intelligence gathering and verification to how to use intelligence to set traps, every case came from his own real-world experience, captivating his students.
Halfway through the lesson, He Jianian suddenly raised his hand slowly.
"Teacher Lu."
Lu Jingyan stopped speaking and looked at him.
He Jianian adjusted his glasses, slowly stood up, and asked in a highly professional tone, "I have a question for you. Professor Lu, could you talk about the evolution of logistics systems in ancient warfare from a macro-historical perspective, and what profound impact it had on the geopolitical landscape at the time?"
When the question was raised, most of the students in the classroom were stunned.
This question is too big and too biased. It's purely theoretical research, which is completely different from the practical skills that Lu Jingyan talked about.
The graduate students behind He Jianian already had a mocking smile on their lips.
This is the killer move. I'll use my most professional area to attack your weakest point. You're just a military commander; what do you know about historical macroeconomics? What do you know about geopolitics?
All eyes were on Lu Jingyan, waiting to see how he would respond.
Chu Yunfei felt a surge of anxiety and immediately looked down to search for the supplementary materials she had brought. She had stayed up all night preparing background information on many historical battles, including those related to logistics.
She was about to stand up, intending to help him out as a teaching assistant, when she felt a cold gaze fall upon her.
It was Lu Jingyan's gaze.
There was no warmth in his eyes, only two clear words: Sit down.
Chu Yunfei froze, biting her lip, and reluctantly sat back down. She didn't understand; this was clearly her best chance to shine!
Lu Jingyan's expression remained unchanged. He even gave He Jianian a faint smile.
“Professor He, you are an expert in this field.” His voice was steady and strong, without a trace of embarrassment at being challenged. “Admitting one’s shortcomings is also a kind of strength. In the study of purely theoretical historical materials, I am indeed not as well-versed as you.”
He actually admitted it so directly!
He Jianian was stunned. All the sarcastic remarks he had prepared were suddenly stuck in his throat. It felt like throwing a punch with all his might, only to hit cotton – an indescribable sense of frustration.
The students behind him looked at each other, wondering why this person was acting unpredictably.
"but……"
Just as He Jianian thought he had succeeded and was about to say a few more polite words to let the matter drop, Lu Jingyan suddenly changed the subject.
"Theory must ultimately serve practice. How about we take a specific example to discuss this?"
He tapped his index finger rhythmically twice on the podium, his gaze fixed on He Jianian, like a beast locking onto its prey.
"Take the Battle of Red Cliffs as an example. Historical records state that Cao Cao's army suffered from acclimatization problems, leading to a large-scale epidemic. Professor He is an expert; could you explain from the perspective of logistics and epidemic prevention why Cao Cao's hundreds of thousands of troops were so easily defeated and suffered a large-scale epidemic?"
Battle of Red Cliffs?
He Jianian was overjoyed.
This is practically offering his face to be slapped! This is a field he has studied for decades, and he can easily render this lowly soldier speechless by simply quoting a historical record.
He's showing off his skills in front of Guan Yu, and he's only making a fool of himself!
"Hehe, Professor Lu, that's a good question!" He Jianian smiled smugly. He cleared his throat and immediately began to quote extensively from classical texts, launching into his most proficient long-winded discourse.
"The Records of the Three Kingdoms clearly states, 'When Cao Cao arrived at Chibi, he fought against Liu Bei, but was unsuccessful. Then a great plague broke out, and many officers and soldiers died, so he led his army back.' Pei Songzhi also said that people from the north are not accustomed to the climate and water, and will inevitably fall ill. This shows that at that time, most of Cao Cao's soldiers were from the north, and when they first arrived in the south, they could not adapt to the hot and humid climate, which led to a decline in their immunity. This was the main reason!"
"Secondly, the sanitary conditions of ancient armies were extremely poor. Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in one place, eating, drinking, and relieving themselves in the camp, which made it very easy for germs to breed. Once one person contracted a disease, it would spread rapidly and form an 'epidemic.' This point has been mentioned in military books throughout history."
He Jianian became more and more excited as he spoke, spitting as he spoke, as if he were Zhuge Liang, who was pointing out the direction of the country.
The graduate students behind him nodded repeatedly, their gazes toward Lu Jingyan growing increasingly contemptuous.
Chu Yunfei's heart sank again. She felt that Lu Jingyan was too impulsive. He had completely handed over the initiative to the other party and forced himself into a desperate situation.
Ten minutes passed before He Jianian reluctantly ended his "academic popularization," concluding, "So, Professor Lu, the defeat of Cao Cao's army was a historical inevitability, the result of the combined effects of climate, geography, sanitation, and many other factors. These are all clearly written in the history books."
He shrugged, his face saying, "What else do you have to say?"
The entire classroom was completely silent.
All the students felt that Teacher Lu was likely to lose this time.
Lu Jingyan listened quietly until He Jianian finished speaking before he slowly opened his mouth.
"Professor He is erudite and knowledgeable, which is admirable."
He first offered a compliment, then his eyes suddenly turned sharp as knives.
"But you and all historians have overlooked a most fatal detail."
That's the water source.
"Cao Cao's army was said to number 800,000, stationed on the north bank of the Yangtze River. The amount of water they consumed daily was astronomical. Their only source of drinking water was the Yangtze River."
"Professor He, have you considered that, under those circumstances, there might have been something in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River?"
He Jianian was taken aback: "Upstream? What could be upstream?"
A cold smile curved at the corners of Lu Jingyan's lips.
"There are animal carcasses."
"There are the bodies of soldiers who died in battle."
"There were even rotting livestock that the enemy deliberately threw."
"Given the climate and troop density at the time, once the water source was contaminated, outbreaks of highly contagious diseases like cholera and typhoid fever, which are transmitted through the digestive tract, were almost inevitable. Their speed of transmission and mortality rate could not be explained by the simple phrase 'acclimatization issues'."
"This approach of using water pollution to launch a devastating attack on the enemy's logistics supply lines is what we call 'asymmetric warfare.' To this day, it remains one of the core skills that special forces of various countries must master when conducting infiltration behind enemy lines."
Lu Jingyan's words were crystal clear.
He didn't cite any history books; he only talked about modern military epidemic prevention and special operations.
He Jianian opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word. The color drained from his face, then suddenly flushed red, as if an invisible hand was choking him, turning him a liverish color.
He spent his whole life studying old documents, but he had never thought about the problem from this perspective.
This is the crushing power of knowledge barriers!
It's a game-changer for theoretical knowledge compared to practical experience!
The classroom was initially deathly silent.
Immediately, thunderous applause erupted!
"Wow! Teacher Lu is amazing!"
"Wow! So history can be interpreted like this? I've learned something new!"
"To kill someone is to destroy their spirit! Old Man He's face has been slapped so hard he's swollen! Hahaha!"
The students' gazes toward Lu Jingyan had shifted from awe to fervent worship.
As the school bell rang.
Amidst laughter and applause, He Jianian and his students slunk away from the classroom, not daring to look back.
The students gradually dispersed.
Lu Jingyan was tidying up his lesson plans on the podium when a figure walked up to him.
It's Jiang Fan.
That unruly genius "troublemaker" didn't utter any provocative words today; he simply watched Lu Jingyan silently, his eyes filled with complex emotions.
Lu Jingyan looked at him calmly without saying a word.
The two stared at each other for a full half minute.
In the end, Jiang Fan said nothing, but simply placed a notebook gently on the podium.
Then, he turned around and left.
Lu Jingyan picked up his notebook and opened it to a sand table analysis of the battle case he had discussed in his previous class. He even used a red pen to propose three different scenarios for the tactical choices at several key points, and marked the advantages, disadvantages and risks of each scenario.
There was a question mark at the end of the handwriting.
"If the enemy anticipates our infiltration intentions and sets up an ambush on Hill 3, is there a way to break this situation?"
A barely perceptible hint of appreciation flashed in Lu Jingyan's eyes.
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